Growth of carbon nanotubes by gas source molecular beam epitaxy

Multiwall carbon nanotubes have been grown by gas source molecular beam epitaxy in the presence of Ni catalyst. Some nanotubes show thinner bases compared with their heads. First- and second-order Raman scattering spectra are used to study the structure of samples with different initial thicknesses of Ni layers. The second-order 2D Raman mode of carbon nanotubes shows a downshift compared with the graphite-like structure. The growth of carbon nanotubes is found to depend on the size of the metal droplets. When the initial Ni layer is either too thick or too thin, few carbon nanotubes are observed. The Raman spectra show graphite and glassy carbon structures for too thick and too thin initial Ni layer films, respectively. Only when a proper range of Ni catalyst film is used, carbon nanotubes could be found.